Clouds rolled in, veiling the sun.
Shadows fell upon the battlefield.
"Keugh…"
Yuri gritted his teeth.
The mysterious Orc shaman was emanating a strange power. He couldn't shake off the black grasp.
The tides had turned against them.
Kurui had brought down Jose, and the Orcbal forces were pushing back the knights.
"Ah…"
Strength drained from Yuri's body.
Beyond his blurring vision, a knight's head was flying through the air.
Their eyes seemed to meet.
He was still glaring at the enemy.
Though his body had died, his soul remained on the battlefield.
Yuri grasped Guilty tightly.
[Do not resist.]
The Orc shaman's voice was like a chilling wind.
[There is nothing you can do. Just accept your fate.]
His will was being eroded.
A ringing filled his ears.
Yuri could no longer feel his body. Only a thread of consciousness lingered in the darkness.
He tried to move, but there was no response.
No—something twitched.
Guilty.
It felt as if it were an extension of his own limbs.
Rather, Guilty was urging Yuri.
Yuri opened his eyes.
More precisely, he willed them to open.
Then, the energy of Heart-Soul Slash that resided within him became another eye, revealing the battlefield, engulfed in black smoke.
Color faded as if evaporating.
In a monochrome world where only contrast existed, Yuri could see a pitch-black figure with overwhelming clarity.
The silhouette of the Orc shaman, whose eyes were blindfolded with cloth.
He was holding something, from which black energy rose like tendrils.
The darkness engulfing the battlefield originated from that Orc shaman.
Was this the kind of trickery the Allied Army had fallen to in his past life?
He had come to change fate.
He would not let things unfold the same way as before.
He raised Guilty.
The voice he had heard in the previous life's dungeon echoed in his ears.
The hollow eye sockets of the nameless knight who had died without even leaving a name filled Yuri's mind.
Heart-Soul Slash.
He now understood why it had come into his hands.
Yuri swung Guilty.
His body was dying, and most of his strength had already been drained, so his strike had little power.
But that was enough.
Yuri slashed at the enemy's heart and soul.
Like a cloth caught on a thorn, the black form was swept up and fluttered with Yuri's blade.
The Orc shaman flailed his arms in panic. Only then could Yuri feel the ground beneath his feet.
His senses returned.
The noise of the battlefield rushed back in.
He could not miss this moment.
Yuri gathered what strength remained and thrust Guilty once more.
The faint figure of the Orc shaman was sliced in two.
[How…!]
The black form split in half and wavered in the air, then vanished like smoke.
The rules of the world were restored.
The madness faded from the eyes of the Orcbals, and the black smoke that had paralyzed the Allied Army disappeared without a trace.
For a moment, both humans and Orcs stood in stunned silence, the fighting paused.
A fleeting stillness settled over the battlefield.
Yuri did not miss the opening.
He stabbed the back of an Orcbal nearby.
The Orcbal arched backward in agony. That scream served as the signal for the battle to resume.
"Get a grip!"
Yuri looked toward Jose.
Jose was fighting again. But after what he had endured earlier, his movements were slower. At this rate, Kurui would win.
"Damn it…"
Yuri wanted to help, but the intensity of the fight was too high. If he interfered now, Kurui might take him out instead.
Meanwhile, Kurui pressed Jose even harder.
Their weapons clashed. As Jose's guard dropped, Kurui struck his solar plexus with his toe.
Jose collapsed to his knees.
An axe was raised high into the air.
At that moment, Kurui turned and smiled at Yuri.
It was bait.
He was saying, "I'm going to kill Jose. If you want to stop me, come here," as he beckoned to Yuri.
Yuri knew it was a trap, but he couldn't stop himself.
This, too, was the same as in his past life.
Even knowing it would end badly, he charged forward.
That was the kind of person he was.
"Kurui!"
Yuri leapt forward.
The distance closed in an instant. The angle of the axe shifted.
Yuri approached directly to save Jose, and Kurui was ready to intercept.
He raised Guilty to block the axe, but a massive shockwave swept through his body. His insides churned, and he coughed up blood.
"Your Highness…"
Jose looked at him with a twisted expression. He seemed to be blaming himself.
Yuri gave him a crooked smile.
Kurui's axe loomed over Yuri's head like a shadow.
He had experienced this moment before.
When Laurent killed him in his past life, the world had slowed down just like this.
Not wanting to die a disgraceful death, Yuri forced the corners of his mouth up into a smile.
That was when it happened.
Something other than the axe came down on his head.
It was a gush of bright red blood.
Yuri looked up.
And he couldn't believe his eyes.
Kurui's arm had been severed.
The arm that had held the axe was spinning in the air above.
Instead of Kurui's grotesque face, a stranger was looking down at him.
It was a face he had never seen before.
A man with dark brown hair, wearing ragged, tattered clothes.
He grabbed Kurui's head with one hand, as if handling a child.
"You."
He opened his mouth.
"You a cool bastard."
Yuri realized who he was.
Among Kurui's forces, there was said to be one hidden absolute powerhouse. And he was known to speak the continental language poorly.
One of the Ten Strongest, a swordsman from the East.
Commonly referred to as the Outsider.
"This bastard, didn't even feed me proper."
Speaking in broken continental tongue, he struck Kurui.
Kurui tried to resist, but with his arm gone, he couldn't stop him.
In the end, Kurui's neck was torn off and he died.
Yuri even frowned at the sight of the spinal cord and nerve bundles being ripped out.
After Kurui died, the Orcbal forces lost their will to fight. The knights seized the opportunity and annihilated them.
However, the tension on the battlefield still lingered.
The Outsider who had instantly slain Kurui was now facing Yuri.
The knights came to protect Yuri, but he signaled them to stand down.
"You."
The Outsider pointed at Yuri. Even Yuri felt tense and swallowed dryly.
"You're a cool bastard, but you messed things up."
Then he began walking toward him.
Yuri opened his palm, signaling the knights to remain still.
From what he recalled of his past life, the Outsider wasn't wicked by nature. In hindsight, he was closer to being just.
"No way…"
Yuri widened his eyes and feigned surprise.
"What a manly stature!"
"What?"
"Handsome face. Broad shoulders. Superb skill. I think I may know your identity, sir."
"What're you sayin'?"
"May I dare speak your honorable nickname here?"
"You know me?"
"One of the Ten Strongest whose name is known across the continent—aren't you the Outsider, sir?"
The crowd stirred at Yuri's words.
The Outsider furrowed his brow.
"That name, those guys gave me without askin'."
"You're right. It's rather careless. They say the four seas are all brothers, but Outsider feels so heartless. Would you honor us by telling us your noble name and surname?"
The Outsider's name was unknown.
He tilted his head slightly and stared quietly at Yuri. After seeming to ponder something, he finally opened his mouth.
"Good. I'll tell you."
"It's an honor."
"My name's Moyong Chanida."
"Yes, Lord Moyong Chanida."
"Moyong Chan!"
"Y-Yes, Lord Moyong Chan."
The flow wasn't bad.
Yuri lowered his stance, rubbing his hands together.
"Lord Moyong Chan, we're currently at war with the Orcs."
"I have eyes too."
"Ah, yes, of course you do."
His tone was rude, but what use was a prince's status to a man from the far East? He was one of the Ten Strongest, someone even the imperial family would yield to.
Yuri endured it and kept bowing to him.
"I'd like to have you by our side, Lord Moyong Chan, but first, once this war ends properly…"
"You."
But Moyong Chan wasn't a particularly patient man.
"How'd you do it?"
"Pardon?"
"How'd you slash the shaman?"
He placed his hand on Yuri's neck.
The pressure was immense.
Yuri took a breath.
"Well, that's…"
"Well, that's…?"
Yuri gave a bold smile without flinching.
"Let's talk about it after we finish killing the Orcs."
***
With Kurui's death, the victory was fully tilted in their favor.
The Allied Army easily annihilated the Orcs. Ragna mounted Kurui's head on a spear to celebrate.
Yuri stood alongside Ragna, overseeing the post-battle cleanup.
"The Outsider, huh…"
"I'll try to persuade him to aid the Allied Army."
"Do that. I'll trust you."
Moyong Chan wouldn't listen to anyone but Yuri. Ragna entrusted everything related to him to Yuri.
That meant he was trusted.
"Still, honestly…"
The Allied Army was searching the Orc settlement.
As the truth gradually came to light, Ragna muttered,
"Truly, Orcs are repulsive creatures."
Yuri nodded in agreement.
One horrifying scene after another was uncovered.
In one tent, they found the corpse of a butchered human. Alongside chunks of other animals, it hung by its hide on a hook. The way the flesh had been cut and sliced was no different from a butcher shop.
Several soldiers vomited.
"Burn everything."
"Yes, sir."
The dead were perhaps better off.
In another tent, they found a prison made of iron bars. It looked just like the Orc cages seen in Count Sadeur's territory.
Only women were inside.
Some had swollen bellies. Most were not in their right minds. They couldn't even distinguish whether the approaching soldiers were humans or Orcs.
"Filthy bastards…"
Elsewhere in the settlement, they found a group of half-Orcs and men used as slaves.
More imprisoned humans continued to be discovered.
Ragna's adjutant asked,
"What should we do with them?"
Ragna closed his eyes.
Yuri watched his decision closely.
Given Ragna's character, he might very well kill them all in the name of preserving their dignity.
But what came from his mouth was unexpected.
"Graham."
"Sir?"
"Tell him to take care of it."
"He's currently…"
The adjutant trailed off, then composed himself and responded.
Ragna hated objections. Once a command was given, it was to be followed as is.
"Understood."
Once the adjutant left, Ragna placed a hand on Yuri's shoulder.
"You seem to be close with Graham."
"I've heard of his reputation. He's a true knight."
"Well, perhaps he fits Briol better than the Empire."
Ragna chuckled as he started walking.
"Come."
Ragna led Yuri to a corner of the Orc settlement where the surviving Orcs had been gathered.
Dozens of surviving Orcs knelt with their heads bowed.
The eyes of the troops followed Ragna and Yuri.
The entire army was watching closely how the Orc prisoners would be treated, with deep-seated hatred toward the Orcs saturating the troops.
"Yuri."
Ragna asked him,
"What should we do with these ones?"
As he listened to Ragna's voice, Yuri swept his gaze over the Orcs.
Sensing the mood, one of the Orc prisoners bowed and trembled before Yuri. They were instinctively begging for mercy.
"I intend to leave it to you."
"Yes, sir."
"Is it a heavy burden?"
"Not at all."
What was Ragna hoping from him?
Perhaps it was a test.
Whatever his true intentions were, this situation was like a gift to Yuri.
"Truly…"
Yuri echoed Ragna's words.
"They're revolting."
At that, Ragna burst into laughter.
Yuri drew Guilty.
The Allied Army would come to like him—and also fear him.
Opportunities to gain trust and fear at the same time were rare.
Yuri walked forward.
Then, one of the kneeling Orcs subtly raised his head.
Feigning submission like a human, it bowed deeply, pressing its forehead to the ground.
Was it begging for pity?
Yuri indifferently brought Guilty down.
Blood spattered.
He slashed, again and again.
The Orc couldn't even resist and was hacked apart dozens, hundreds of times while remaining prostrate.
Flesh split open, and innards splattered.
Yuri tore the Orc apart alive, ensuring it suffered until the very end.
The other Orcs groaned in terror.
To be feared by the enemy wasn't a bad thing. In fact, it felt good.
Even the Empire's knights in black armor stared at Yuri with horrified eyes.
Yuri curled his lips into a grin.
Would it only be the Orcs who ended up like this? If they ever became enemies in the future, they too would be no exception.
Yuri looked back.
All eyes in the Allied Army were on him.
As he received the swirl of countless emotions in their gazes, Yuri instead asked,
"Any volunteers?"
In his past life, the Allied Army had never won such a complete victory.
History had changed.